LadyRivlin
New Member
Hi guys! New chameleon keeper here. I’ve learned a lot in the past couple of months. I’m overhauling my setup this week and was looking for some advice on a few details and to see if some of the changes I’m planning are appropriate. Most of this is related to the terrarium, but there are some nutrition and health questions, as well.
Chameleon Info:
◦ Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care?
Pascal is a female veiled. In my care since 3/28/19. I bought her from Petsmart in ABQ, NM, where they told me she was 3-4 months old. So now I guess she is 4-5 months old, but I have looked at pictures of other chameleons and I’m thinking she might be older. She is about 7 inches from nose to vent.
◦ Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon?
The only times I handle her is if I’m moving her from one enclosure to another. I’ve only done this once since I got her. She tries to bite if you get too close, but will come running up to my hand if I have food. She also despises my phone, so nearly every photo I get of her, she looks pissed off.
◦ Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders?
Her diet is about 40% crickets, 50% wild caught moths, 20% a combination of waxworms, mealworms, and super worms. I try to catch about 15 moths in the evening to give her (I recently learned that she should be fed in the morning, so I’ll be changing this). If we have small crickets, I give her about 15, if large, I give her 6-8. We remove any she doesn’t eat. I was using Fluker’s gel because my husband has it for his tarantula feeders, but I’ve been doing frozen strawberries, mangoes and spinach for the past week. When I give her worms, I hand feed her until she’s not interested anymore, usually 4-8.
◦ Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?
I got Repti-Calcium calcium with D3 originally and have been dusting once or twice a week.
◦ Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking?
I have a spray bottle and mist her 4 times a day for about 3-5 minutes. I see her drinking from the droplets that form on her crest, but not from the leaves or anything else.
◦ Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?
She has brown, formed, kind of slimy-looking droppings and white pasty dropping that sometimes have a yellowish tinge on one end. No parasite testing has been done.
◦ History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you.
She has shed once since we got her, about 3 weeks ago.
Cage Info:
◦ Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions?
I have an exo-terra glass terrarium 12x12x18 currently. The top is screen.
◦ Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule?
I have the exoterra fixture that fits the terrarium with a 26w UVB CFL in it. The brand is All Living Things (generic at Petsmart). The light is on from 8am to 8pm most of the time. It sometimes gets turned off around 10pm.
◦ Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps?
I have a combo analog hygrometer/thermometer that sits low in the terrarium (about 2 inches from the bottom). The lowest temp I’ve seen around 5am was 65 degrees. I use a ZooMed nano lamp with a ceramic heater at night and on cool days. The highest temp has been around 75 degrees with the thermometer where it is now. I used to have the thermometer near the top just under the heater, and the highest temp there was 88 degrees.
◦ Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity?
The humidity gets down to 45-50% in the morning. It’s usually around 60% during the day before a misting. I have the combo analog hygrometer/thermometer. I mist 4 times daily and she is in a glass enclosure.
◦ Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind?
I do have live plants including a heavenly bamboo, some dracaena spikes, a couple of asparagus ferns. I did have some petunias, but they died. The dracaenas and heavenly bamboo aren’t doing too well either.
◦ Placement - Where is your cage located? Is it near any fans, air vents, or high traffic areas? At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor?
The cage is located in my son’s room in a corner, pretty low traffic. The top of the cage is about 5 ft off the floor. We have a mini fan set up near the bottom of the terrarium to help air flow through the bottom vents up through the top screen. It is not always on, just when it is really warm or if the substrate seems too wet.
◦ Location - Where are you geographically located?
I am in Mimbres, New Mexico. Very, very dry climate.
Current Problem -
She seems healthy for the time-being, but I am wondering about the tannish coloring of her feet (see photos). Is this a normal or should I be worried? We have a high mineral content in our well water and it seems like it leaves water spots on her skin when it dries. Is that ok? If not, what can I do about it?
Otherwise, I understand there are some changes I need to make, and as I mentioned before, I want to make sure the changes are appropriate.
I’m going to get her a bigger terrarium. I’m thinking an exoterra med xtall (18x24x36). I am at a loss for lighting for this. I am confused by the different care sheets that I’ve seen. I had bought a 26w UVB CFL, but I’ve seen info on here saying that they don’t give out that much UVB. Is they somewhere I can read more about the science of lighting? I would like to use another exoterra hood because of the fit. What bulb would be recommended for this?
I’m also going to be getting a multivitamin and calcium without D3. How do I know which ones are high quality?
Homemade gutload- I’m planning to blend bee pollen, spirulina, carrots and collards to start with. Is this ok? How do you prepare them? How much do you give to feeders and how often? How much do you make at a time and how do you store it?
I’m going to get a dripper. Does the tube need to go into the tank? Does it need a rock or something to drip from?
I’m going for a vivarium setup, so I got some isopods and springtails. I’m also going to get some different plants, a creeping fig and a dwarf schefflera. I’m getting some drainage substrate to go on the bottom of the tank. How deep should the drainage layer be? And do I need a mat between layers or not?
I want to get another thermometer to keep at the top of the enclosure. What are your thoughts on liquid crystal strips vs analog vs digital?
If you see anything I’m not addressing, please tell me.
Chameleon Info:
◦ Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care?
Pascal is a female veiled. In my care since 3/28/19. I bought her from Petsmart in ABQ, NM, where they told me she was 3-4 months old. So now I guess she is 4-5 months old, but I have looked at pictures of other chameleons and I’m thinking she might be older. She is about 7 inches from nose to vent.
◦ Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon?
The only times I handle her is if I’m moving her from one enclosure to another. I’ve only done this once since I got her. She tries to bite if you get too close, but will come running up to my hand if I have food. She also despises my phone, so nearly every photo I get of her, she looks pissed off.
◦ Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders?
Her diet is about 40% crickets, 50% wild caught moths, 20% a combination of waxworms, mealworms, and super worms. I try to catch about 15 moths in the evening to give her (I recently learned that she should be fed in the morning, so I’ll be changing this). If we have small crickets, I give her about 15, if large, I give her 6-8. We remove any she doesn’t eat. I was using Fluker’s gel because my husband has it for his tarantula feeders, but I’ve been doing frozen strawberries, mangoes and spinach for the past week. When I give her worms, I hand feed her until she’s not interested anymore, usually 4-8.
◦ Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?
I got Repti-Calcium calcium with D3 originally and have been dusting once or twice a week.
◦ Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking?
I have a spray bottle and mist her 4 times a day for about 3-5 minutes. I see her drinking from the droplets that form on her crest, but not from the leaves or anything else.
◦ Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?
She has brown, formed, kind of slimy-looking droppings and white pasty dropping that sometimes have a yellowish tinge on one end. No parasite testing has been done.
◦ History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you.
She has shed once since we got her, about 3 weeks ago.
Cage Info:
◦ Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions?
I have an exo-terra glass terrarium 12x12x18 currently. The top is screen.
◦ Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule?
I have the exoterra fixture that fits the terrarium with a 26w UVB CFL in it. The brand is All Living Things (generic at Petsmart). The light is on from 8am to 8pm most of the time. It sometimes gets turned off around 10pm.
◦ Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps?
I have a combo analog hygrometer/thermometer that sits low in the terrarium (about 2 inches from the bottom). The lowest temp I’ve seen around 5am was 65 degrees. I use a ZooMed nano lamp with a ceramic heater at night and on cool days. The highest temp has been around 75 degrees with the thermometer where it is now. I used to have the thermometer near the top just under the heater, and the highest temp there was 88 degrees.
◦ Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity?
The humidity gets down to 45-50% in the morning. It’s usually around 60% during the day before a misting. I have the combo analog hygrometer/thermometer. I mist 4 times daily and she is in a glass enclosure.
◦ Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind?
I do have live plants including a heavenly bamboo, some dracaena spikes, a couple of asparagus ferns. I did have some petunias, but they died. The dracaenas and heavenly bamboo aren’t doing too well either.
◦ Placement - Where is your cage located? Is it near any fans, air vents, or high traffic areas? At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor?
The cage is located in my son’s room in a corner, pretty low traffic. The top of the cage is about 5 ft off the floor. We have a mini fan set up near the bottom of the terrarium to help air flow through the bottom vents up through the top screen. It is not always on, just when it is really warm or if the substrate seems too wet.
◦ Location - Where are you geographically located?
I am in Mimbres, New Mexico. Very, very dry climate.
Current Problem -
She seems healthy for the time-being, but I am wondering about the tannish coloring of her feet (see photos). Is this a normal or should I be worried? We have a high mineral content in our well water and it seems like it leaves water spots on her skin when it dries. Is that ok? If not, what can I do about it?
Otherwise, I understand there are some changes I need to make, and as I mentioned before, I want to make sure the changes are appropriate.
I’m going to get her a bigger terrarium. I’m thinking an exoterra med xtall (18x24x36). I am at a loss for lighting for this. I am confused by the different care sheets that I’ve seen. I had bought a 26w UVB CFL, but I’ve seen info on here saying that they don’t give out that much UVB. Is they somewhere I can read more about the science of lighting? I would like to use another exoterra hood because of the fit. What bulb would be recommended for this?
I’m also going to be getting a multivitamin and calcium without D3. How do I know which ones are high quality?
Homemade gutload- I’m planning to blend bee pollen, spirulina, carrots and collards to start with. Is this ok? How do you prepare them? How much do you give to feeders and how often? How much do you make at a time and how do you store it?
I’m going to get a dripper. Does the tube need to go into the tank? Does it need a rock or something to drip from?
I’m going for a vivarium setup, so I got some isopods and springtails. I’m also going to get some different plants, a creeping fig and a dwarf schefflera. I’m getting some drainage substrate to go on the bottom of the tank. How deep should the drainage layer be? And do I need a mat between layers or not?
I want to get another thermometer to keep at the top of the enclosure. What are your thoughts on liquid crystal strips vs analog vs digital?
If you see anything I’m not addressing, please tell me.